Vancouver’s bike sharing program may take a hit on helmet laws

Kelly Sinoski, Vancouver Sun06.21.2012

Vancouver’s bike-share program could hit the skids even before it begins if cyclists are required to wear helmets, research by a European cycling organization shows. Ceri Woolsgrove, road safety officer with the European Cyclists’ Federation, said cities with mandatory helmet laws tend to see fewer cyclists in bike-share programs compared with those that don’t. Bike-share schemes in helmetless European cities, for instance, are flourishing.Gerry Kahrmann
/ PNG

Vancouver’s bike-share program could hit the skids even before it begins if cyclists are required to wear helmets, research by a European cycling organization shows. Ceri Woolsgrove, road safety officer with the European Cyclists’ Federation, said cities with mandatory helmet laws tend to see fewer cyclists in bike-share programs compared with those that don’t. Bike-share schemes in helmetless European cities, for instance, are flourishing.Tyler Anderson
/ Vancouver Sun

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Vancouver’s bike-share program could hit the skids even before it begins if cyclists are required to wear helmets, research by a European cycling organization shows.

Ceri Woolsgrove, road safety officer with the European Cyclists’ Federation, said cities with mandatory helmet laws tend to see fewer cyclists in bike-share programs compared with those that don’t. Bike-share schemes in helmetless European cities, for instance, are flourishing.

In Dublin, Ireland, thousands of riders use its bike share every day, despite its cobbled streets, he said. Yet in Melbourne, Australia, where cyclists must wear a helmet, only dozens use the program. Both cities are of a comparable size with programs involving about 600 bicycles.

“[Bike-sharing] seems to be such a good investment; it’s really taken off in Paris and all over Europe,” said Woolsgrove, head of the European Helmet working group, which campaigns against compulsory helmet laws. “It’ll be a shame if it doesn’t take off in Vancouver because of the helmet law.”

Under B.C.’s Motor Vehicle Act, all children and adults must wear bicycle helmets on public roadways.

Jerry Dobrovolny, Vancouver’s transportation manager, acknowledged B.C.’s helmet law poses the “biggest risk” in getting the city’s proposed subsidized public bike rental system off the ground and may potentially result in the program being shelved.

The city is negotiating with Alta Bicycle Share of Portland, Ore., which will provide the bikes and helmets, to make sure it follows criteria such as ensuring helmets are easily accessible, are cleaned and disinfected after every use, and are replaced if they’re involved in a fall or crash.

The company, he said, realizes the helmet issue could risk the viability of the business. The program, set to cost $1.9 million per year, would see 1,500 bikes at 125 self-service stations throughout downtown and along the Broadway corridor.

“Even if they have a solution that works but the public perceives [helmets] as an obstacle, then they may be looking at lower ridership, usage and lower revenue,” Dobrovolny said, adding Vancouver also wants to be assured of a “faster uptake” in the program than that experienced in cities like Melbourne.

“There’s a number of things [Alta] need to do ... with any negotiation there’s a chance it won’t conclude positively but we’re hopeful.”

Helmets tend to dissuade would-be cyclists from hopping on a bike for a variety of reasons, Woolsgrove said, the main one being that they “make cycling look dangerous.”

In a bike-share program, he added, the issue is compounded by the fact people don’t want helmet-head or dislike sharing a communal helmet. And even if they did wear shared head gear, they’d have to adjust the helmet because there’s no such thing as one-size-fits-all. Plus, there’s the issue of storage.

Woolsgrove suggested Vancouver lobby to launch a trial period in which helmets are exempt from its bike-share program.

“There’s no evidence that shows introducing helmet legislation does anything to reduce head injuries or fatalities,” said Woolsgrove, who will visit Vancouver next week for the Velo-City Cycling conference. “We’d prefer it to be the individual’s choice.”

But Dobrovolny said the city’s hands are tied. The provincial law has been in effect since 1996 and is based on the premise that helmets reduce head and brain injuries.

Statistics from the BC Coroners Service show in the past five years, 49 cyclists died in motor vehicle accidents while another 16 were killed in non-MVI crashes. Of those, 29.6 were wearing helmets compared with 70.4 per cent who weren’t. The proportion of deaths involving those not wearing helmets was significantly higher in crashes where no motor vehicles were involved, spokeswoman Barbara McLintock said. This could include spinning out on black ice or loose gravel.

“There seems to be an awful lot of deceased cyclists who weren’t wearing helmets,” she said.

Erin O’Melinn, executive director of HUB, formerly the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition, said a helmet law doesn’t necessarily mean “people will make safe choices.” Good bicycle infrastructure and educating all road users about cyclists is just as important, she said.

Between 2006 and 2011, Vancouver Police data show 7,871 tickets were issued to cyclists for failing to wear a helmet.

Yet in Portland, Ore., where helmets are only mandatory for children under 16, there are more adult cyclists wearing helmets than in Vancouver. The city’s annual bike count last year showed 80 per cent of cyclists wore helmets, up three per cent from 2010, transportation department spokesman Dan Anderson said.

Portland, which has the highest number of commuter cyclists in the U.S., and a higher-than-average number of female cyclists, is also developing a bike-share program for 2013.

The helmet debate in B.C. is heating up as Ontario considers a law for all cyclists in that province. At the same time, Vancouver is preparing to host the international Velo-City cycling conference, which will draw local, regional and international cycling advocates to the city next week.

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